Mari(k)onette: Loyalty Never Works
by spoonerdog123
Summary: In which everyone nearly kills each other, then they don't... Well, someone dies in one case - but come on, that's hardly the point. Kickshipping (Ryuuji/Duke X Jounouchi/Joey X Honda/Tristan) AU, dubnames used, rated for some level of creepiness. Adopt shipping 4, written for the YGO Fanfiction Contest, Season 9.75, Round 5.


**Warnings: **I don't want to give away half the plot, so I'll just say that it's an oddball little story, pretty creepy in places. There's a bit of OOC here and there, but it's fairly well explained (just ask if you aren't entirely sure why Duke in particular went the way he did)

**Length:** 5,813 words.

**Time Period: **Same AU as the other Mari(k)onette oneshots – the beginning is set shortly after Shizuka leaves her house during the events of Mari(k)onette: Today Never Ends.

It's not necessary to read them all in order, though it probably helps a little bit. If you wish to read all eight one-shots in the order in which they were written (the order that gives you the best story arc out of it), you can find all of them on my profile - use this order:

Mari(k)onette: Yesterday Never Forgets

Mari(k)onette: Today Never Ends

Mari(k)onette: Tomorrow Never Comes

Mari(k)onette: That Never Happened

Mari(k)onette: Loyalty Never Works

Mari(k)onette: Memory Never Dies

Mari(k)onette: Gambling Never Pays

Mari(k)onette: StopStart, PlayPause

**Handicap: **_'There are three rules that will apply to all fics this round: _

_1. I must state what one typical/logical path of the particular ship might be, or a common path if there is one (for instance, Mai is likely to be tortured or lose her memory if the pairing is Illusionshipping)... and then do the exact opposite._

_2. All my stories in this round have to take place in one single AU created from a nightmarish combination of the two most crack AU ideas I have written down over the last four rounds. The stories must take place in the same AU, and need to reference each other somehow – the catch is that I currently don't know whether I will get my desired adopt pairings or not, and I can only write two of the fics at any one time (I have to do the first two before I can take on the third, and after that can only take one adopt pairing at a time.) _**_The stories must be able to be read as individual one-shots._**

_3. The story must be written in an unusual POV and/or tense.'_

**Feedback: **Mmmmh, I'm not fond of the perspective shunting, especially not with the second person bits - pretty weird to write, but I couldn't be sure if it was actually _needed _to tell the story with. I might chop a bit of it at some stage...

But at any rate, outright flames = bad, concrit/saying hello/other = good. A simplistic view of reviews, I know, but eh.

**POV Used: **Shunts between a series of biased, somewhat illogical first person POVs, and a weirdo objective one written in second person for no good reason.

**Shipping To Be Inverted: **Kickshipping (Duke X Joey X Tristan), otherwise known as 'those three randoms who attempted to sleep in the same bed.' Though I stand neutral on most pairings, I have to admit that I'm a bit of a secret fan when it comes to this one, having read an _extremely _good story involving it some time ago. With three of the silliest characters the dub has ever known, all of them qualifying as the most perverted characters the manga's ever seen, this one has some potential to be either serious (as serious as teen–angst can get, anyway) or pretty goofy. The split probably sits more to the serious side, but eh– it's a triangle, which means that it makes for good drama.

So: I declare this fic to be equal parts creepy horror story and adventure–with–happy–friendshippy–ending, two things that are pretty much the inverse of each other anyway. The end result is a weird teen drama thingy, with some distinctly bizarre moments.

* * *

**Mari(k)onette: Loyalty Never Works  
**

_You open the book._

_It's not an ordinary book; the pages are delicate metal gratings, the gaps filled with coloured glass. Instead of words, there are beautiful pictures; pictorial representations of the life of the owner in whose memories you are now trespassing. They decay a little with every new picture, cracks forming and metal bending until the last pictures are unrecognizable – a motley collection of shattered pieces of mosaic, some parts of the glass missing; the frameworks twisted and bent out of proportion._

_Yes, human memories are certainly unreliable._

_Turning back to somewhere near the beginning of the book (not the very beginning page, as that is currently being created), you stare at the image; moving backwards gives you a rough chronological sequence of what happened that night, the night Yami: Marik was taken down._

_From the looks of things, the whole sorry story started when Tristan tailed Duke..._

* * *

"Friiiiiiidaaaaay!"

As I watch from the relative safety of a rooftop, the raven–haired teen staggers down the alleyway directly below my position, pausing occasionally to take a long swig from the bottle in one hand. The nightclubs in this district certainly know how to party, to the point where the guy's been distracted from his Sivath duties for the last week. It's hard not to giggle watching him; a guy in pretty posh clothes and oddly bare feet, howling out seemingly random words with great gusto at the top of his lungs.

Looking at the disheveled wreck of a human being, you wouldn't think that this idiot – Duke Devlin – is in fact one of the most feared of all the 'Sivath', which I'm guessing is some sort of gang of thugs. According to my research, he's a fighter who is well known for his enjoyment in making little figurines – apparently, he designs one for every 'Monster' or 'Duelist' he's slaughtered. Duke's got so many of the miniatures that he's been able to make an entire game with them, and gain a fortune in sweet, sweet profits. Some claim that he even tried to sell the game to _Pegasus _at one stage, the leader of the Duelists – and though this was never exactly confirmed, I've a feeling that it's somehow true; after all, the guy is one of the most eloquent con artists around.

Not that he exactly looks like that right now; but then again, looks can be deceiving. I used to think Duke was a relatively normal human being – but ever since I saw that absolute _monster _following him around in the school corridor, even if no–one actually noticed it... well, I've been having second thoughts.

* * *

_Though there's a little torsion muddling your view of the scene, the page quite clearly depicts that Duke is at least mostly human; you beg to differ. Of all the Sivath, even with yourself included in that number, that one might just be the most inhuman of them all. Considering that he is the only member to get a truly savage enjoyment out of his kills, and factoring in the ridiculous amount of planning the guy puts into hunting down even the weakest Monsters and Duelists, the only logical conclusion one can reach is that Duke Devlin is a fruit loop (though obviously more dangerous than a bowl of soggy cereal). _(1)

_Which then leaves you wondering – what kind of fool would follow Duke Devlin down a dark alleyway?_

_You note with some interest that there is some sort of shadow accompanying Duke on this page, but the glass in that area has discoloured; you cannot tell what originally stood there. Shaking your head, you decide to turn the page. Maybe later on, there will be a better image._

* * *

"Shiz Friday, Friiidaaaay!" Grinning lopsidedly, Duke draws a wickedly curved sword from the holster on his back, swishing it around a few times. A chill goes down my spine as it glints in the moonlight – that thing could easily disembowel someone... come to think of it, I've seen him do that more than once. One thing I've learned through my recent stalking of Duke is that he enjoys hunting and killing pretty much any person who's strolling along with a total beast following them.

"Gahaha! Another freakin' week, and sha Monsters don't come near me! They scared of the Duke? Oh yeah, baby yeah!" A clumsy thrust parts the air, and–

He moves so fast, I don't even see him throw the dart. I don't hear the whistle of the projectile, either – the first thing I know about it is the sharp pain when the weapon hits my shin, a rope tangling around my right leg an instant later. Before I can react, Duke's pulled me straight off the rooftop in one quick jerk, catching me before I can hit the pavement. He drops me as soon as he does so, making sure that I land on my back, just to give himself another advantage. I've barely touched the ground before I'm hissing in pain, as he slams one foot– wait a second, was that a _talon?_ – into my chest to keep me down, then places the very point of his sword at my throat. His lip curls in a half smile as he watches my struggles, and I can see that there is no trace of alcohol influence in those cold green eyes.

* * *

_You start to laugh when you see that the idiot has been caught in the next scene, just as you predicted. The glass is dark with the fear of being captured, so you have to squint a little to make out the picture; but surely the Sivath is pursuing the fool in anger. Perhaps–_

_Oh._

_That cackle dies the instant you recognize the position Duke is in with Tristan – you believe this would be classed as 'maximum contact', and with a human. Even Mai never went that far. Surely that's not acceptable, not unless he's planning to–_

_A small detail catches your eye, distracting you from the scene; Duke's fingers are crossed behind his back. He's clearly only teasing the human, threatening him falsely... but why? Why is he displaying such a high degree of savagery towards one who is certainly not his enemy?_

_Frowning, you can only hope to find the answer in the next page._

* * *

My assailant lets me squirm for several long, awful seconds, before he gently strokes my chin with his blade. The tip is so sharp, it actually draws blood; a thin stream trickling down my neck, staining my collar. Duke grins savagely, bending close to lick it off, rough tongue flicking in and out.

"Damn, I love Fridays."

So, it was all an act; a cruel act to lure and mesmerize anyone tracking him. I stiffen at the thought, my mind racing: Duke's finally caught me, I shouldn't have followed him, what is he going to _do_–

For a horrible moment, his lips brush my neck, and I feel the very tip of a single, horribly sharp tooth; I immediately think of all those vampire movies I've seen, where the creature bends over their victim and _drinks–_

No. No freaking _way_. There's no way Duke Devlin could be a vampire.

...Right?

* * *

_You gasp when you see the next part; what the hell was he thinking? The image is cluttered with unnecessary background, clouded with fear, it leads your eye all over the place; which doesn't exactly make it an easy picture to study. What you can at least see is that Tristan's thoughts were clearly frantic at the time, and that Duke is in an undoubtedly taboo position. That's about it – you can't tell whether the Sivath is kissing Tristan's neck, or... no, he couldn't have done that. Surely the teen wouldn't be so badly in love to have picked some random as his soul–mate._

_That's when you notice the small patch of darker brown on the jacket's collar, which was not in the previous scene – proving beyond a doubt that Duke is at least drinking the blood of the human, even if he's not making his final gamble and biting down._

_So many of those important Sivath rules have been broken now, you've lost count. You seethe and snarl in anger over the book – but eventually, you give in to temptation and turn the page..._

* * *

For a second, Duke looks as though he might just give in to the urge to slice my throat and have some more of the red liquid; but then he pulls his head away, staring intently into my face. I close my eyes in reply, fervently wishing that he goes away.

After a tense silence, he laughs, an easy laugh, stepping off me and sliding the sword back into its casing. "So, Tristan. Did I scare you?" I swallow hard, and he grins; a slightly crazed baring of his too–long teeth. "I'll take that as a yes." Helping me up, he lazes against the damp wall of the alleyway, one foot touching the cracking mortar and faded bricks. "Tell me, _now._ What were you doing, prancing around on the rooftops?"

I wince. "Well. Um. I was following you."

"Why?" The question rings like a shot in the silence; I shiver and back away. A sly grin pulls at the corner of his lip in reply; "Hey, I don't bite."

"Y–you're _not _a vampire?"

"So, that's where we stand." Duke pulls a phone out of his pocket, the light from the screen darkening the shadows in his face as he checks his text messages. "Hmm. Shizuka's in trouble, and the Third Puppet's–"

"Shizuka's in trouble?", I blurt, and he yawns. "Yeah. You'd be dead in a heartbeat if you tried to save her."

I go to make an angry response, but the teen's eyes glaze – and over his shoulder, the anorexic bipedal alligator with the red and black armour (**1**) makes a series of rude gestures, then sticks out its tongue in my general direction.

...Wait, _what?_

I yelp in surprise, and the monster's gone in a split second. Duke grins; "So, you saw my soul. A _human _wouldn't have seen that." Duke pauses, thoughtful; "And yet, I cannot see that you are anything other than human. That's very... exotic." He advances on me, step by step. Licks his chops. "I wonder, are you a Monster? A half–breed, perhaps?" He draws the sword again; "Ahhh, how I _love _Fridays..."

I've had enough; I turn and sprint down the street as fast as my legs will carry me.

Behind, I can hear him laughing.

* * *

_You want to stop reading somewhere around that point, but something keeps you glued to the pages. It of course doesn't stop you from muttering a good few curses as the scenes become more and more frantic – and then Tristan sees Duke's soul._

_All hell breaks loose in your head at that one; there's no way this could have happened! For a mere human to see the spirits of Sivath, that's absolutely impossible!_

_But it has happened; and the evidence is right here, in front of your nose. You can only hope that Duke Devlin at least tried to get rid of the human at the point you have reached. He is of course under obligation by Sivath regulations to eliminate the guy; you would not be surprised if this whole thing turned out to be a complex set up on Duke's part._

* * *

I run and run and run, feet pounding on the hard ground – not that I've got a chance of escaping if he doesn't want me to get away. I've seen Duke move before, and he's so fast that I can't track him; if he wants me, he'll surely come and get me, and there will be nothing I'll be able to do about it.

As it turns out, my worst fears are confirmed – I only get about three blocks away from my pursuer before he makes his move.

BOOM!

There's a roaring in my ears, and I'm flat on my face an instant later. With an effort, I look up; and just for an instant, there the creature is, right in front of me. Only for a second, but it's more than enough time to burn that image into my mind.

It's that one card Joey was so fond of using back at Duelist Kingdom, exactly the same creature as the one that was pulling faces at me back in the alleyway – you know, the stick–figure bipedal alligator. That the thing happens to be dressed in Duke's clothing and holding Duke's sword are the only signs that the teen ever existed in its place–

And then its shape flickers like a dying candle flame, and it is gone.

Duke grins down at me."_So_ sorry to interrupt your jog, but I hadn't finished with you."

* * *

_You growl, flicking through several pages in your impatience. The memory goes on and on; Duke played with his prey, seemingly allowed it to escape–_

_And then, like a total idiot, he let Tristan see his true form. A total breach of protocol – though this was a somewhat unusual situation, you suppose._

_Looking at the latest scene, you note that the image, though still dark with fear, is now in sharp definition; the details far better realized than they were in those ones you skimmed. You can't believe it – he actually turned and faced his fear at this point, a rare trait in a human. And he was winning, too – the pictures become somewhat brighter from here._

_You turn page after page, reading deeply into each image, wondering what is being said here, or here, or here._

_Sadly, you haven't realized just how addictive the story is yet._

* * *

_Alligator's Sword_, that was the name of the beast. I rife through the jumbled card lore in my head, until I come to it:_ 'Can swing its sword faster than the speed of sound.' _Well, if it can swing a sword faster than sound speed, it can presumably run faster than that; I guess that explains the sonic boom.

It's somewhere around this realization that I give up trying to escape – what the freaking hell can someone like me do when a guy like that comes after me?

"Well, go on. Chop my head off." I gesture to the teen's blade, but Duke just shrugs.

"Why would I? You're not something I come across every day."

I blink, wondering if all that creepy behaviour before had been just an act, him trying to scare me into submission. The teen's certainly taken a different angle to proceedings now; all I can do is trust him and pray it's not a trap.

"So?"

"So, you're rare. Which means that I want you... very much indeed."

Duke pauses a moment, then sighs. "Thing is, I can't actually _have_ you. You see–", and here he flicks out his phone again, "–I just got this message. The _main _problem is that we less–than–human people are supposed to keep our existence a secret from you humans, and there's been a crackdown on that one." He lifts an eyebrow at me. "According to the new protocol, I am supposed to eliminate you immediately. That said..." He flicks a finger across the touch screen, grinning rambunctiously; a trace of the old Duke surfacing. "...I've got more on my mind, trust me. I mean, there's a Monster Killer and a certified psychopath somewhere around here, both making beelines for Shizuka's place."

I growl rebellion, and he laughs, reading my expression with ease. "No, don't even think about it. I know you're a total sucker for that girl, but–"

"I _have _to defend Shizuka!", I snarl, and he blinks, putting his phone away.

"Actually, you _don't_."

"WHAT?! Come on, she could be in really big danger!"

"That will unlock her courage in the end. She can't rely on friends forever."

I get to my feet, give him one last pleading look. "Please. Just this one night, let's work together again. It'll be just like in Battle Ci–"

The look he gives me in reply could have felled a gazelle. "And we all know how much I _enjoyed _that."

_Oops. _I probably shouldn't have said that to him;

"But there's strength in numbers; and I'll do my very be–"

"No! Try to follow me again tonight, and I'll run you through myself!"

"What, and you really think I'm going to listen to you?" I'm pretty much in Duke's face now, backing him against the wall of the alleyway – and to my surprise, his gaze actually softens a moment. He reaches up to touch my shoulder, his fingers lingering on my neck a moment too long.

"Look, I just don't want you to die."

I bristle, stepping back from him. "I won't. Think, we survived Battle City–"

"You won't survive these guys. One of the two, Yami: Marik – he's a total butcher. I mean, he nearly took out two of us Sivath without breaking a sweat. You're not going to be able to stop him, let alone him _and _the Monster Killer!"

"What, and _you _can?"

"No. I'm just going to die a whole lot slower than you would. Think about it; that'll give Shizuka more time to get awa–"

"I won't let you die!" The words come out of my mouth without warning, and he just laughs.

"_Really?_ Wow. Nearly forgot that Duelists weren't the only stubborn ones._"_

That's about when realization hits me hard between the eyes. "You're going to die. And you're... you're _laughing _about it."

"It had to happen eventually." He puts a hand on my shoulder, looking a little wistful. "It was good to see you again. That's been the most entertainment I've had in a while."

I push him back, repeating my line with conviction. "I won't let you die."

Too late, I realize that I've pushed his patience too far – he's on me in a split second, slamming my body into the far side of the alleyway. "You don't want this night to end... _badly_, do you?" He steps back, snarling. "I'm going, no matter what you do. So, how about you just walk away, and I'll walk in the opposite direction?"

That's definitely not a question; it's a command. I sigh, bowing my head as I drag my feet back up the alleyway–

Then, out of spite more than anything else, I turn and run the other way.

Instantly, something slams into me at high speed, bowling me over. A voice hisses in my ear; "Well, I suppose if you can't beat them, _join _them. You haven't really given me much choice, so..."

Then there's fangs sinking into my neck–

And the world goes absolutely _crazy_.

* * *

_You balk as you read, stunned. Why is Duke chatting with Tristan? Why has he not cut off that human's head yet? _

_Well, you suppose that he considered the human a valuable asset – or at least a curiosity. He certainly paid a large amount of attention to him. You're not entirely sure why he would threaten Tristan like that, but...  
_

_Come to think of it, he seemed almost infatuated with the young man – then, when you got to the page when the picture became discordant, and yet somehow accepting in its colours; then, two pinpoints of discomfort in the neck that could only have been fangs sink in, and you realize that he_ _**was** in fact infatuated. The Sivath seemed so determined to win what looked to be some sort of argument, that he used up his only chance to make someone all his.  
_

_Several of the following pages are completely wrecked, the delicate wires forming the edges of the mosaic gone. The colours of the glass have melted into each other as a result, the pictures unrecognizable. You shake your head in disbelief, putting the book down and selecting another from the bookshelf._

_Maybe the Book of the Killer will tell more of the story. You know from reading a little of this one before that it's resolutely cheerful – the blood in the beheading scenes, for instance, is a bright and cartoonish red, and the scenes always look like they've come out of a comic themselves. Finding the correct page is a trial, but you find it eventually, reading once again._

_And the first thing that strikes you about the sequence is that it's significantly bleaker than what you've read of this book in the past – the colours are several shades more grey than they would otherwise be under normal circumstances. The framework is a little twisted, too, cracks scarring the pictures. _

_These memories are clearly painful for the guy._

* * *

I grin goofily to myself as I cruise through the skies on my Baby Dragon. The mount is a little on the clumsy side, but otherwise swift enough; I'll land at my good friend Tristan's place soon. I'm looking forwards to it, too – I haven't seen the guy for a good few years now, not since I was accepted into the Academy and Tristan went to some human school or other – Domino High, I think.

So, the plan is to pick my buddy up, show off a little, show him my sister, all that sort of thing. While as a Duelist, I wouldn't normally associate with humans, Tristan saved my life more than once from the Monsters – erm, this was way back, when we went to primary school together. For whatever reason, the human was at that time well aware of the existence of Monsters; well before I was, in fact. How that happened, I've no clue.

_At any rate_, I decide, _I'll just pick the big guy up from his house, then take him over to Shizuka's place, have a few drinks, all that sort of thing._ No big deal or anything; no saving the world or Duelists versus Monsters or anything. Nope, tonight's going to be all about milking the advantages of being a Duelist, celebrating my new title of 'Monster Killer' with two awesome friends. It's going to be _sweet._

Just for fun, I ride my dragon low through the tangled alleyways around Tristan's house, enjoying the thrill of the ground rushing past–

MONSTERMONSTERMONSTERMONSTER !

I slow immediately, searching for the thing – and a sudden dragging force on my Baby Dragon's wing threatens to send it into a swift downspin. Growling, I kick my knees into my dragon's sides, pushing my mount into a roll to take the sideways momentum – and swooping back upwards to avoid a sudden meeting with the ground, I face my mysterious enemy.

Only, it's not there. I look around in confusion, and–

"Hey! Down here!"

There, relaxing against the alley wall below me, is a tall, athletic teen; his brown hair gelled up into a point... oh yeah, and he's got two holes in his neck. I groan inwardly; all – too – presumably, it's a Monster; and it's staring the Monster Killer himself in the face, grinning like an idiot.

"Tell me again," I yawn, "are you stupid or suicidal?"

"Neither. I'm an old friend of yours." As the dragon lands, my jaw drops in recognition.

_Tristan._

Tristan, the guy I was going to visit.

Tristan, the awesome guy who saved my life more than once back in primary school.

Tristan, who's clearly been bitten by some Monster or other – the bite looks fresh, perhaps only ten minutes since he was taken. I arrived ten minutes too late – and now, he's no longer neutral in the conflict, which means that I'm going to have to...

Okay, that just_ completely _ruined my night.

The creature laughs as I dismount, fangs flashing for a moment. He goes forwards to caress my cheek like he used to in the bad old days, but I back off, shaking my head furiously. The brunette immediately stops and stands at a distance from me, looking somewhat puzzled: "Come on Jou, where's your old smile? Would have thought you'd welcome me these days. And it's been _far _too long since your last visit. That fancy school of yours getting too busy for..." He trails off when he finally notices my shocked expression. "Eh? What is it?"

"Tristan..." I sigh, looking him in the eye. "I'm called the Monster Killer now."

"So?"

I stare at him for a long moment, and Tristan blinks several times, seemingly not getting the message. Eventually, I have to actually point at the bite marks on his neck; and he winces, rubbing them absentmindedly. "These? Well, Duke bit me in an alleyway. They don't hurt or anything, though. I mean, they don't hurt much..."

_Duke_, of course it had to be Duke, I _knew _something just wasn't right about that guy. I'll have to get rid of him later, for doing this to me. I pull out my deck, shaking my head as I rifle through it absent-mindedly. "This is ridiculous. I...I was going to visit you. And now..."

"Does what I am matter?"

A long silence, while I spread out the cards in my hand. I worked so _hard_ with what I had to get a good rank in the Academy, make my sister proud, so on and so forth. Now, staring at my friend, I'm not so sure that it was worth it. After all, if I hadn't gone, I'd never have had a reason to kill my very best buddy. Now I know it's more than a reason; it's a necessity.

Tristan takes a step towards me, and all I can think about is the textbook explanation of a Monster. It is doing a great imitation of what the real Tristan might do, but it's not him, it can't be. I remember the training they have to give those who are unready to kill Monsters in human form - they tell you over and over that it's not a _real _human. Like a zombie in a video game, they're just the screaming victims of a greater dark being. I know that the real Tristan's probably suffering inside this awful thing, I should put an end to its misery–

But the only way I can do that is to kill a thing that wears the face of my best friend. And... well...

No. I mustn't let emotions get in the road now. The first step is to corner the Monster; so I do.

"It's still my duty to kill you." I calmly advance on him, dully repeating the words I've said a million times now. "You are a Monster."

"I'm not!", my once–friend yelps, scampering up the wall adjacent to him at speeds no human could hope to equal. With a sigh, I grab his leg and pull him back.

"Don't try to run, please. I will kill you swiftly. That is the least painful way." I pause a moment, readying myself to summon just about any of the multiple creatures in my deck I can kill him with. "This is going to hurt me more than it's going to hurt you."

He jerks his leg out of my grip, and runs back up the wall, perching atop it to gaze down at me. "I–I'm not fighting you! There's no freaking _way–_"

I hesitate; but no, I've got to do this for Tristan. No matter how well Yami manipulates him, a Monster is a Monster. So, I draw a card, raising it high.

"I summon Panther Wa–"

BOOM!

The thrown sword breaks the sound barrier as it flies through the air, and a split second later–

* * *

_You couldn't stop reading, you just couldn't, not until you reached another damaged segment of the book __just then _– because, seriously? A Duelist actually emotional for a moment, the memory fraying at the edges due to the mental pain he was feeling at the time? Unheard of, absolutely unheard of – and yet it is clear that Jounouchi hesitated. You wonder if he knew Tristan somehow, you're sorely tempted to flick back through his story and see if they met sometime in the past – ah, no. You mustn't, you've got research to do after all. The burnt and singed glass of this one's memory will tell you little here.

_You pull a third book off the shelf, admiring the ridiculously ornamented cover. The Book of the Alligator is certainly a beautiful book, its storytelling a fine balance between elegant simplicity and wondrous complexity. You have to pull your mind away from the pretty pictures multiple times while you're flipping through to the section you want – these pages are so well organized that only a few at the very start have crumbled beyond recognition, and so you may read the memory passage you seek uninterrupted._

_And when you have finished, you gape for several seconds, then snap the book shut and get the hell out of there. You've got more than information to judge their souls now, even if you don't know that the vast majority of it happens to be wrong._

* * *

CLANG!

"What is it _now_, Tristan?", I snarl, striding over to where my newest charge has nearly gotten himself killed. The pathetic Duelist who dared to threaten my partner is now neatly pinned by the collar to a brick wall at the end of the alleyway, my sword still quivering in the fabric – I immediately trot over to remove my weapon, and allow myself the pleasure of a little gloat. After all, Joey isn't human anymore, I remind myself – he is a brainwashed Duelist now, incapable of emotion. The sort that has no consideration for the people a district if they get the feeling that one of the humans is a Monster in disguise; the sort that shouldn't be allowed anywhere near my people. And now, he's attempted to _murder _my partner, _my _property–

"So, _this _is the famous 'Monster Killer'... I'm disappointed in you, Joey."

The idiotic blonde struggles against the thrown blade, eyes wild. "H–he's a Monster! And you, too! I've got to–"

"Can't you tell, idiot? He is a _Sivath_, and under my care. And you – you _scum _– you are threatening us with death. In _my _territory." In one swift motion, I rip out my blade and sweep his legs out from under him, placing one foot squarely in the centre of his back. It feels equal parts amazing and awful to have this arrogant Duelist on his face, helpless, his life in my hands – but I'm currently far too angry to care about that. "Now, give me just one good reason not to obliterate you for what you've tried to do."

"I–I'm your friend...", he chokes out, and I snarl.

"Not if you're trying to whack the hell out of my_ actual _friend, you're not!"

He stares into space, his gaze empty and lost – and of course, just as anticipated, it's Tristan who steps in; "Wait a sec, Jou's my friend."

I pause a moment in thought. "Joey 'is' or 'was' your friend?"

"Still is. He was just... confused at the time he attacked me."

"He was brainwashed, yes."

"I was doing what was right", Joey mumbles, and I resist the urge to kick the teen on the ground. Damn, I _hate _Duelists – how they turned the once friend–loyal guy into a creature like this is absolutely beyond me. In some ways, they're probably worse than the Monsters.

I sigh, my anger fading in a moment. "Well... Just this once." I glare at the blonde, sheathing my sword. "But if you _dare _come ba–"

"No. Just kill me." His voice is hollow, and I stop, staring at him in incomprehension.

"You _want _to die?"

"I... I tried to kill my own best friend. Because I didn't, the Academy will no longer accept me as the 'Monster Killer'." I snort, go to try and whack sense into his thick skull, but then he goes on; "And heck, the memories... I don't think I can live with those by myself. There's no way I can go back to the Academy–"

So, he actually still feels a little for Tristan. I'm of course surprised by that outburst, but I hold my feelings closer than Mai holds her poker cards: "And there's no way you can stay here. You know the rules." I look over at my partner. "You remember the one about not letting Duelists stay in your territory? That's the one I'm talking about."

Tristan gives me one of those looks of his, the sort that demands and pleads at the same time. "Can't you bite him? Wouldn't that help things?"

I shake my head - the Bite is only available from the start to pure Sivath, like me - and even we can only use it once. It's a sharing of one's soul with another person, so after one use, it can't be done again - not unless the partner dies. And heck, the partner only gains the ability to Bite after a good seven years, at _least. _(2)_  
_

"No. I can only choose one person to make Sivath; and I picked you. Besides, this guy's absolutely brainwashed. Even if I wasn't limited to one person, there's just no _way–_"

He utterly ignores me, and instead crouches next to the blonde, blunt human molars just grazing the human's neck. "But if he's Sivath, he can stay with you and I. Right?" My first instinct is to say 'wrong' ; there's no _way Tristan could possibly turn Joey Sivath while I'm still alive. If I happened to be dying, then it __might _be possible-

That's about when I suddenly notice that his canine teeth are jutting out over his lower lip. With a shiver, I decide that the mental pain Tristan's going through has actually split his soul in half. And if only half a soul is mine, then the other half...

So, the Bite is in fact an option.

"Well–" I still hesitate, running through exactly how I'm supposed to explain this one to the others, how the heck they're going to manage without territories, how I might have to give up some of _my _area. Perhaps being Sivath would not help things. And if Domino City ended up with a Duelist-brainwashed Sivath, it would be on my head.

And then I look at Tristan, the anomaly I've always loved, and Joey, a Duelist who seems more human than the rest. I look at the pain in their eyes, at how much Joey wants to die from guilt, at how much Tristan wants him to live.

The dying scream of Yami: Marik echoes through the night, and I have to hold in a howl of victory. Shizuka _beat _him, she really defeated him, I knew she could do it–

_Maybe there's hope after all._

"Duke?"

I don't pause this time. "Yes... If he's Sivath, he may stay."

With a mumbled thanks, the brunette chomps down.

* * *

**Notes:**

1. Are Fruit Loops a sort of brightly coloured cereal in America? I know they are in Australia, but if you don't know that Fruit Loops are indeed cereal, you won't get the joke.

2. Come _on_, you had to see this one coming. Just look at the artwork of 'Alligator's Sword' ('Alligator Sword' in the manga) – not too hard to figure out why that particular monster was chosen for Duke here.

3. One of a large number of restrictions placed on Sivath. The four groups (Sivath/Duelist/Monster/Puppet (which is more Elite Monster than anything else)) all have a plethora of restrictions upon them to keep things from going Mary Sue/Gary Stu. Most of these are not mentioned in the AU, but generally if a character doesn't take action xyz, it's probably because of some sort of restriction.

The general idea is that Sivath have to use _themselves _as their own weapons, and so don't have the same sort of versatility Duelists do. Providing the Duelist has a card for it and enough time to perform the summon, they can do whatever the hell they want - so this is countered by the Sivath's energy-burning high speed. Meanwhile, while both Sivath and Duelists take a long time to train up, Monsters are pretty much created on the spot, giving them good strength in numbers. Puppets are even worse than this, as they tend to retain the original abilities of the owner in addition to all the Shadow Game abilities.

**UAB**

I have very little to say about this one. So here, have some boring numbers!

Final Stats

**Number of fics written for full round (roughly ten days):** 8

**Number of words written in the initial one-week time period:** About 28,300 (first six fics). Counting the seventh and eighth fics nets you a total that's over 31, 000 words for the ten days.

**Number of fics written over the full five round contest:** 17 + one crazy Ryuuzaki X Haga one that wasn't put into Round Five, but was posted in Dropbox + 4 full-written Yami Bakura X Noa rewrites.

**Number of words written over the full five round contest:** 57,213 - so yes, over half the words were in fact written in the mad dash of the fifth round.

**Number of times Author thought words of a dubious nature very loudly at her computer during week: **Count was lost after fiftieth time.

**Number of times Author nearly hurled something sharp at her computer during week:** 18

**Number of times one freaking song was played through headphones over the last three rounds: **According to iTunes records, it's 22,377 (Bomfunk MC - Freestyler). Second placer was at 21,590 (Example - Close Enemies), and after that it dropped off pretty quick. Both tracks were added somewhere during the second round, leaving Author with no excuses for listening to such dull and repetitive drivel.

iTunes broke halfway through the final round, leaving Author to listen to some tracks in VLC media player, which did not include either of these songs. Machinae Supremacy - Gimme More was much liked during this time (far more than the original Britney Spears track, proving in the Author's mind that weirdo repetitive tech-pop would be better if it had heavy guitars in it), as was Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.

**Number of days during week that** **Author completely forgot that contest was, in fact, a contest: **5.

**Number of days Author got angry and/or upset while on sugar high: **Two. During this time period, the crackish Adopt Three (Yami Bakura X Yakou Tenma) was written, which is probably why any respect towards the readers is lost. Adopt Two was also heavily edited during this time, which is probably why it insults the audience every second sentence.

**Number of minutes taken to stop giggling like an idiot when Author realized that she'd written more than half of the initial fics posted at the beginning of the round, had more fics than there were authors, and that there were exactly enough of her fics to make sure that the list started and ended with hers:** 15

**Number of minutes taken to realize that the above situation was going to make voting ****early **nigh impossible for her, as the Author now only had a choice of four fics and three votes to hand out: 15

**Number of minutes spent raging when Author realized that the 'Shipping Classroom' aspect of the AU couldn't be written about, due to no suitable adopt pairings being available: **10, then she shut up and got working on Yami Bakura X Yakou.

**Number of characters killed, OOC'd, tortured, Yami'd, or put through some similar form of serious trauma during the seven fics: **13, and that's not even recounting characters that had more than one of these things done to them.

**Number of times chapters were accidentally uploaded to the wrong fics: **17+, though only one of these incidents went unnoticed for more than several minutes, due to my obsessive proofreading.

**Number of occasions Author obsessively stalked submission and judging threads, hoping and hoping that she'd get some more choice: **Easily 11+.

**Number of occasions Author said a few words of questionable origin when she saw that for now, there would be no more choice: **Same number as above, minus one.

**Amount of sleep lost because Author was either writing til midnight or lying awake thinking about what plot she was going to write next: **At least eight hours.

**Amount of self-bashing done because Author decided that stories were not good enough:** More hours of this happened than hours of sleep.


End file.
